Kris Komori

Why He's Amazing: Because he left Portland, Oregon, for Boise, Idaho, where he’s taking the town’s tiny, burgeoning dining scene to new heights: Each night, his single five-course tasting menu combines seasonal elements with, as he puts it, “tons of cool textures” (and colors and flavors) in dishes such as scallop with pea puree, grilled apricots, salted plums and truffle oil.

Claim to Fame: The "infamous kale salad," as he calls it, which he "introduced" at Franny's in Brooklyn. The dish of raw Lacinato kale ribbons tossed with a garlic-and-lemon dressing and topped with breadcrumbs and pecorino has been written about on countless blogs and in the New York Times.

Photo courtesy of Sarah Flotard

Garrett Melkonian

Why He's Amazing: Because he’s applying the obsessive attention to detail he learned as a pastry chef to the Middle Eastern food he grew up eating—all while donating more than $25,000 since the restaurant’s opening to Syrian refugee relief.

What “Mamnoon” Means: “It’s ‘thankful’ in Arabic and Farsi. We focus mainly on Lebanese, Syrian and Persian cuisine, with a few Armenian dishes and a touch of Turkish influence here and there. At its very heart, it’s a union of cultures that don’t always play well together, but on any given night you have this melding of cultures in the restaurant because of what the restaurant does. You’ll have a group of people from Lebanon sitting two tables down from people of Iranian cultures.”

Bonnie Morales

Why She's Amazing: Because she has translated the often monotonous Soviet-era dishes she grew up with (she’s the first-generation American daughter of immigrants from Belarus) into a bevy of terrific and fun shared plates called zakuski: pickled, cured and house-made sour-cream-smeared delights that wash down quite nicely with swigs of Kachka’s 50-plus vodkas.

Mentor: Her mother. “I look to her for inspiration, and she’s a pretty damn good cook. The amount of food that she puts out for 30 of our closest relatives is really impressive, so I think she could hold her own on the line if she was ever put in that position. I learned from her to over-prepare and cook for three times more people than you think you need to.”

Advice for Young Chefs: "Cook as much as you can at home, play with spices and flavors and try things that you don't think would work...You need to hone your palate on what works together and why it works together. Every time you make something bad, you'll come up with an idea for something that's good."

Culinary Mentor: Alan Takasaki at Le Bistro in Honolulu. “Alan provided a positive growth environment for his staff. I was always encouraged to expand my horizons and strive to be a better cook each day. His ability to make sure everything was done right, but doing it in a positive manner, is something I carry with me.”

Ian Wilson

Why He's Amazing: Because at 25, he’s been a coffee roaster and cooked at a brewery, and now he’s opened his own Scandinavian-leaning small-plates restaurant, where Portlanders are loving his regionally sourced, pickled and fermented offerings.

Where the Restaurant’s Name Comes From: “Fenrir was the name of a giant wolf demi-god from Norse mythology. We’re sort of loosely Scandinavian, and we didn’t want to call it something too myth-heavy and ridiculous like Thor’s Hammer or something.”

Justin Woodward

Why He's Amazing: Because he's a vegetable fanatic dedicated to Oregon ingredients, a modern sensibility and the traditions of Alain Ducasse and Joël Robuchon.

Background: WD-50 (New York City), L'Auberge Del Mar (Del Mar, CA)

Quintessential Dish: Asparagus with sorrel and pine needles

Insider Tip: Be sure to request the off-the-menu dessert flight. Woodward worked under modernist dessert master Alex Stupak at New York City's WD-50, and his sweets are as sublime as they are beautiful.